


till the battle (of the day) is won

by Phosphorescent



Series: Scenes from the Herd [2]
Category: Star Wars (Marvel Comics), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Animal Death (nongraphic), Banthas, Bittersweet, Character Study, Childbirth, Eopies (Star Wars), Force Ghosts, Force Use, Friendship, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Krayt Dragons (Star Wars), Loneliness, Minor Violence, Obi-Wan Kenobi on Tatooine, PTSD, Post-Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Pre-Star Wars: A New Hope, Tatooine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-12 14:29:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29636055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phosphorescent/pseuds/Phosphorescent
Summary: “I flatter myself that I’m quite good at killing,” he told Dolo tiredly, “but I’d hoped I was done with all that.”Or: When a krayt dragon threatens the safety of Obi-Wan's human and bantha families, he will do what he must.
Relationships: Obi-Wan Kenobi & Animals
Series: Scenes from the Herd [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/534187
Comments: 2
Kudos: 29





	till the battle (of the day) is won

**Author's Note:**

> What do you _mean_ , it's been _5 years_ since I last wrote for this series? ;-) Anyway, if anyone is still interested, this fic should contain roughly 3-6 chapters in total. As per usual, updates will probably be slow and sporadic. My apologies in advance! And as always, feedback of all sorts is welcomed.
> 
> Title taken from another line in the song "Pick Yourself Up" by Dorothy Fields and Jerome Kern.

The winds of Tatooine howled over the dunes, at times taking on a lowing that reminded him of the herd he was here to visit. Only a fool or an outlander would venture into the desert during a sandstorm, and Obi-Wan was a bit of both. But this was not a true sandstorm—only a normal day in the Jundland Wastes. 

Still, as the wind whipped up sand and deposited it in every crevice of his robes, Obi-Wan sighed in resignation. He’d be cleaning sand out of his hut for _weeks_ , at this rate.

The herd seemed smaller today. It was not unusual for banthas to drift away from the rest of their herd on occasion, but it was rare for so _many_ to be gone. And the remaining banthas gave off a distinct whiff of fear in the Force. Even the usually implacable Nara was agitated today, and that was… concerning.

Banthas were simple creatures, easily contented and slow to distress. What could have caused this alarum?

He turned to one of the older banthas. “What have I missed, Dolo?”

Dolo gently headbutted him, letting out a low rumble and nearly knocking Obi-Wan off his feet. There was an edge of confused terror about him. Through the Force, Obi-Wan received a vague impression of a large _something_ springing from the sand to devour half the herd.

He frowned. “Where did this happen? When?”

Dolo, of course, could not understand him… not truly. But as he sorted through Dolo’s fuzzy, fear-tinted memories, he recognized a familiar rock formation… a rock formation at the outer edge of Jawa Heights. A place far too close to the Lars’ homestead for comfort.

Suddenly, he remembered the warning the barkeep had delivered the last time he’d gone into town, several months back.

 _“There’ve been reports of a Greater Krayt Dragon_ _out on the far edges of the Wastes. You seen anything, Ben?”_

_“Nothing out of the usual.”_

_“Good. Let’s hope it stays that way.”_

“I flatter myself that I’m quite good at killing,” he told Dolo tiredly, “but I’d hoped I was done with all that. The war ended and we _lost_. In retrospect, perhaps we lost the moment we allowed ourselves to become soldiers at all. But for Luke’s sake…” He let out a sigh. “For Luke, I will become a killer once again if I must.”

Something wet landed in his hair.

He spun around, hand on his hidden lightsaber… only to see Nara, tongue extended outwards. 

“Were you trying to clean me again, my dear? I’m afraid it’s a hopeless cause these days. Tatooine is not conducive to civilized grooming.”

 _More’s the pity_.

Some days, he dreamt of a wash basin full of real _water_ ; of toiletries finer than could be purchased at Anchorhead or Bestine, or even Mos Eisley. 

Perhaps it was shallow and vain to desire such luxuries. But ever since he’d dragged himself out of the pit of despair he’d been in when he’d first arrived on Tatooine, he’d found himself craving tastes of civilization. When the important things were impossible to obtain, the smaller things took on a new degree of importance. Like a well-groomed beard, or a good cup of tea.

Nara huffed out a snort, as though to say, _“That’s no excuse for not_ trying _.”_

The familiarity of the scene might have lulled him into complacency but for the way her eyes darted anxiously from side to side.

Obi-Wan shifted, sweeping the remaining herd with his gaze, and tallying those missing.

_Utu. Neeba. Eru. Pele. Tulo._

And on and on the list went. Worst was the moment when he realized how many calves were missing—over half of them. He supposed they hadn’t been able to move as quickly to get away.

He winced, trying to sweep a blue-tinted memory from his mind.

“I will take care of this problem,” he told her. “You have my word.”

First, however, he was obliged to return to his hut. There, he outfitted himself properly for the expedition, and saddled up Rooh.

He did not know how far he would have to travel to find this dragon, nor how long the journey would be, so it was best to be prepared. He also loaded his holopad with articles about krayt dragons.

The closest Obi-Wan had come to a krayt dragon were the silver-scaled draigons he’d encountered as a youth. Somehow he didn’t think a krayt dragon would be nearly as easy to defeat. Still, at least _this_ sort of dragon couldn’t fly… he hoped.

  
The twin suns of Tatooine were high in the sky by the time Obi-Wan located the dragon’s cave, and he had sweated through the many layers he wore to protect himself from the suns and sand. 

Removing his goggles, he dismounted Rooh and peered into the cave’s depths. It was there that the dragon dwelt; you did not need to be Force Sensitive to know it. The number of discarded bones surrounding the cave would have been enough on their own.

The lack of nearby life forms had been as much a clue to the krayt dragon’s location as its actual Force presence. Not so much as a womp rat, worrt, or even a profogg dwelt within a half-dozen klicks of the beast’s home.

Rooh snorted and shied away from the cave, eyes wide. Eopies were high-strung creatures, and she could sense the presence of a predator. She’d dug her feet in for the last few miles; it was only Obi-Wan’s Force-enhanced affinity with animals that had kept her going.

“It’s quite all right,” he told her, patting her flanks soothingly. “I’ll get closer on my own.”

She didn’t seem to find this reassuring.

The krayt was still asleep deep within the cave, its mind heavy and slow and thick as sleeritsap syrup. Many desert creatures were nocturnal, but the krayt was not; it was sleeping off a recent meal.

One could not, of course, depend upon it remaining asleep… not once it registered a fellow predator’s presence.

Obi-Wan was rather counting on it.


End file.
